polyps

Question
You responded to our question a couple of nights ago about out 9 yr old Husky-I would like to know what a polyp looks like? Is it sorta oblong like a skin tag and dark in color or like a blister? We are taking her to the vet  asap, but would like to have some idea of what it looks like... Thank you

Answer
They are usually red in color, like the inside of the intestines (they are similar tissue) they look like little skin tags, but are often bulbous on the end like a teardrop.  Depending on how big the polyp is, and if it is cancerous or not the color can be anything from light pink to dark red/maroon.  They usually are solid (not like a cyst/fluid filled) and are generally painful to touch.

http://z.about.com/d/coloncancer/1/0/v/2/275.jpg

That's a human and on the inside, but basically a polyp is any sort of mass arising from the smooth epithelium layer  (lining) of the intestines and rectum.

Hope that helps :-) good luck at the vet, I do recommend a biopsy of the tissue.

Laura